McAslan & Partners wins £75m National Galleries archive contract

The National Galleries of Scotland (NGS) has selected John McAslan + Partners to design a new £75 million low-energy archive in Granton, Edinburgh.The practice secured the commission following a publicly tendered contract involving an undisclosed shortlist of firms.Located at Madelvic House, close to the listed former Granton gas tower and Edinburgh College’s campus, the 30,000sq/m National Collections Facility (NCF) will be built to Passivhaus standards to provide a low-energy home for more than 100,000 exhibits – including art, sculpture, photographs and publications.The unused site, which was donated to NGS by the Scottish Government, includes the remains of the oldest purpose-built car factory in the UK, which has been previously been earmarked for demolition, but could now be saved.McAslan & Partners will now draw up detailed designs for the phased facility this winter, with completion anticipated by 2021.